Upon opening this textbook for the first time and glancing at the table of contents, students are presented with chapter titles that reflect all the crucial subject matter of what it takes to be a school counselor. Examples of national models and paradigms, all designed to make the profession manageable and understandable, are on display throughout the book. The authors have incorporated the human side of school counseling at the core of every chapter, hoping not to block the spirit of caring for people by what at first glance might appear to be academic jargon.

This book is designed as a means for graduate students and others to lend their voices to the issues confronting school counselors and, most importantly, to chart the course for invention in school counseling. The authors believe that the school counseling profession is enriched when the voices of aspiring professionals meet the voices of experience, with the aim of creating new ways to serve.